Oakland

Opinion: Oakland Should Reject Jobs Policies that Increase Discrimination

Published

7 years ago

January 8, 2018

Oakland Post

By Oakland Community Leaders

There is a 13-to-1 racial wealth gap between the median White family and the median Black family in the U.S.

You can see one of the causes if you walk by any construction site and count up the number of Black workers you can find. One study listing the 33 whitest jobs in America found a large portion of them to be in the construction industry.

Ninety percent or more of electricians, painters, construction supervisors, tool and die makers, cement masons and others are white, according to a 2013 article in The Atlantic magazine.

Another national study found that minority-owned firms received only 57 cents for every dollar they would be expected to receive based on their availability in government contracting.

Women-owned firms obtained only 29 percent of the dollars they would be expected to receive.

In Oakland, African-American workers obtain 5 percent of the work on most city-funded construction projects, in spite of being 27 percent of the population.

The only project where the numbers are slightly better required a year-long battle by community groups to establish slightly more supportive hiring provisions, and even then some of the agreed-upon provisions were eliminated in the Project Labor Agreement negotiations when community groups were not allowed to be present.

Yet, the Building and Construction Trades Council of Alameda County has requested the City of Oakland (City) adopt a Project Labor Agreement (PLA) on projects funded by the Measure BB Transportation and Housing Bond Measure (Bond) approved by residents of Oakland for $346 million.

If and when the construction unions eliminate these racial disparities such a PLA might be reasonable. In the meantime, it would only reinforce discrimination, and mean that once again Black workers are paying heavy taxes for the building of projects where they are not allowed to work, and minority and women-owned companies are underrepresented.

The U.S. needs a stronger labor movement, and it can only be strong and united when individual unions purposefully and aggressively take on discrimination within their industries. The ILWU has a history of such action.

More recently, the hotel workers’ union has successfully demanded that hotels show progress in integrating their work force. Black workers have a higher percentage of unionization than any other ethnic group in the U.S., when they have the opportunity to join the unions in their industry.

The Building Trades should withdraw its request and work with creativity and enthusiasm on a set of policies that would reduce the deeply discriminatory situation for women and racially underrepresented workers and businesses in Oakland.

Now is the time, when jobs are a bit more plentiful and divisive competition is especially unwarranted. Among the needed steps:

acknowledge the history of unfairness that has led to Black workers having less than 10 percent of the jobs on such projects as the 880 freeway replacement project;
release figures on union membership by ethnicity, and release figures on the utilization of African-American journeymen;
remove job requirements that serve as barriers, and provide support services to increase the numbers of African-American journeymen and apprentices;
expand local apprenticeships in targeted zip codes and increase the percent of local Oakland hiring among apprentices;
engage organizations that represent people of color and women in a massive campaign to integrate the industry;
move apprenticeship programs to locations that are accessible to low-income urban residents;
repudiate the arguments that hold up the precious banner of the labor movement in support of discriminatory policies;
support Councilmember Desley Brooks’ ordiance to provide city funding for contruction job training, the Cypress Mandela Training Program and Citywide Job Centers.

In the meantime, it is the responsibility of the City of Oakland and its elected representatives to implement its own jobs policies that protect both labor and working conditions and the economic and job needs of Black, Latino, Asian, indigenous and female communities.

No policy which could potentially have a negative impact on Black workers and businesses should even be introduced for discussion until the disparity study the Council mandated years ago is finally completed and acted upon.

Any other course of action enhances both discrimination and gentrification.

Submitted by:
Kitty Kelly Epstein, PhD, Professor of Education and Urban Affairs; member of OaklandWORKS, author of “Organizing to Change a City”;
(2012)Margaret Gordon, Co-Director, West Oaklamd Environmental Indicators Project, former Port Commissioner;
Pastor Anthony L. Jenkins Sr., Taylor Memorial United Methodist Church;
Brian Beveridge, Co-Director West Oakland Environmental Indicators Project, OaklandWORKS Alliance;
Robyn Hodges, OaklandWORKS Alliance;
Paul Cobb, Publisher, Post News Group

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Activism

Oakland Hosts Town Hall Addressing Lead Hazards in City Housing

According to the city, there are 22,000 households in need of services for lead issues, most in predominantly low-income or Black and Latino neighborhoods, but only 550 to 600 homes are addressed every year. The city is hoping to use part of the multimillion-dollar settlement to increase the number of households served each year.

Published

6 days ago

May 18, 2025

Oakland Post

iStock.

By Magaly Muñoz

The City of Oakland’s Housing and Community Development Department hosted a town hall in the Fruitvale to discuss the efforts being undertaken to remove lead primarily found in housing in East and West Oakland.

In 2021, the city was awarded $14 million out of a $24 million legal settlement from a lawsuit against paint distributors for selling lead-based paint that has affected hundreds of families in Oakland and Alameda County. The funding is intended to be used for lead poisoning reduction and prevention services in paint only, not water or other sources as has been found recently in schools across the city.

The settlement can be used for developing or enhancing programs that abate lead-based paint, providing services to individuals, particularly exposed children, educating the public about hazards caused by lead paint, and covering attorney’s fees incurred in pursuing litigation.

Most of the homes affected were built prior to 1978, and 12,000 of these homes are considered to be at high risk for lead poisoning.

City councilmember Noel Gallo, who represents a few of the lead-affected Census tracts, said the majority of the poisoned kids and families are coming directly from neighborhoods like the Fruitvale.

“When you look at the [kids being admitted] at the children’s hospital, they’re coming from this community,” Gallo said at the town hall.

In order to eventually rid the highest impacted homes of lead poisoning, the city intends to create programs and activities such as lead-based paint inspections and assessments, full abatement designed to permanently eliminate lead-based paint, or partial abatement for repairs, painting, and specialized cleaning meant for temporary reduction of hazards.

In feedback for what the city could implement in their programming, residents in attendance of the event said they want more accessibility to resources, like blood testing, and information from officials about lead poisoning symptoms, hotlines for assistance, and updates on the reduction of lead in their communities.

Attendees also asked how they’d know where they are on the prioritization list and what would be done to address lead in the water found at several school sites in Oakland last year.

City staff said there will be a follow-up event to gather more community input for programming in August, with finalizations happening in the fall and a pilot launch in early 2026.

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Alameda County

Oakland Begins Month-Long Closure on Largest Homeless Encampment

At 8 a.m. sharp, city workers began piling up trash and dismantling makeshift homes along the nearly five-block encampment. City crews blocked off streets from 14th Ave to 17th Ave, between E. 12th and International Blvd, due to the Safe Work Zone Ordinance that was passed by the city council in 2022 to protect workers from harassment during cleanings, according to a city spokesperson.

Published

6 days ago

May 18, 2025

Oakland Post

The City of Oakland began sweeping their largest homeless encampment on E 12th St. Monday morning. Advocates claim that the city has not done its due diligence with providing ample resources or outreach for residents at the encampment. Photo by Magaly Muñoz.

By Magaly Muñoz

The City of Oakland began a three-week-long breakdown of the largest homeless encampment in the city on E. 12th Street on Monday morning. Residents and advocates said they are devastated about the displacement of dozens of people.

Jaz Colibri, one of the many advocates at the closure, said the encampment sweeps were “intense and terrifying” to witness. They claimed that several residents, many of them non-English speakers, had not been aware that the sweep was happening that day because of a lack of proper communication and outreach from Oakland.

Colibri added that the city had done a Census “many months ago” and “had not bothered to count people since then”, meaning dozens of individuals have missed out on housing and resources in the last few weeks because the city doesn’t offer outreach in multiple languages.

“Basically, [Oakland] dropped the ball on actually getting to know everybody who lives here and then creating a housing solution that meets everyone’s needs,” Colibri said.

City spokesperson Jean Walsh told the Post that notices of the closure operation were posted in Spanish and Chinese prior to Monday, but did not clarify if outreach was done in those languages as well.

Nearly a dozen Oakland police vehicles, California Highway Patrol officers, and Oakland Public Works staff were gathered along E 12th waiting for residents to pack up their belongings and move away from the area.

Advocates said residents “felt unsafe” due to the hefty law enforcement presence.

One city worker, who was picking up debris near 16th Ave, said, “They’ve known we were coming for a long time now” in reference to resident confusion about the sweeping.

The state doubled down on its requirement to get cities and counties to deal with their homelessness crisis at a press conference Monday afternoon. Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office released a “model ordinance” that is intended to provide a starting point that local municipalities can use to build from and adjust in creating their own policies on encampments, if they haven’t done so yet.

Newsom said “No more excuses, time to deliver” after the state has poured hundreds of millions of dollars into solving the issue.

Oakland was awarded a $7.2 million grant from the state in 2024 to close long-standing encampments in the city, including camps at Martin Luther King, Jr. and 23rd Street, and Mosswood Park.

Residents at these encampments were offered wraparound supportive services, temporary shelter, and eventually will be transitioned to permanent supportive housing, according to a city statement from last year.

Residents who accepted housing at these three encampments were moved into newly acquired property, formerly the Extended Stay America Hotel in West Oakland, which will first serve as interim housing for up to 150 individuals and couples in 105 units, and in the coming year, will be converted into 125 units of permanent housing.

Walsh said as of May 2, “32 residents of the recently closed Mosswood Park encampment moved into the Mandela House program” and as of May 12, “41 residents of the East 12th Street encampment have already accepted offers to move to the Mandela House.” The city will provide final numbers of how many accepted and moved into housing after the closure operation is over.

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Barbara Lee

WNBA’s Golden State Valkyries Kick Off Season with Community Programs in Oakland

“The Golden State Valkyries are more than a team—they’re a movement,” said Oakland Interim-Mayor Kevin Jenkins. “Their touchdown in Oakland marks a new era of opportunity, inspiration, and equity in sports. This partnership reflects our city’s deep commitment to uplifting women, investing in youth, and building a community where every dream has a place to grow. We’re proud to welcome the Valkyries to The Town.”

Published

6 days ago

May 18, 2025

Oakland Post

The Valkyries came to Oakland City Hall with a “Hoopbus.” Present were (from left to right): City Councilmembers Noel Gallo, Rebecca Kaplan, Zac Unger and Rowena Brown; Oakland Mayor-elect Barbara Lee, Valkyries President Jess Smith, a Valkyries team representative and Deputy Mayor LaNiece Jones. Photo courtesy Rebecca Kaplan’s office.

Team installs new nets at playgrounds, holds flag-raisings at City Halls in Oakland and S.F.

Special to The Post

The Golden State Valkyries brought the excitement of their inaugural season to every corner of the Bay Area with a full slate of community celebrations leading up to their historic home-opener against the Los Angeles Sparks at the Chase Center in San Francisco on Friday.

The week featured flag-raising ceremonies at city halls in Oakland and San Francisco, three “Violet Net” installation days at Oakland parks to encourage basketball play, fun “Hoopbus” takeovers at multiple schools presented by Kaiser Permanente, and player appearances.

In total, 90 violet nets were installed on 45 basketball courts across 34 public parks throughout Oakland this week. A list of the parks receiving violet nets can be found at Valkyries.com.

About the Golden State Valkyries

The Golden State Valkyries, the WNBA affiliate of the seven-time NBA Champion Golden State Warriors, were announced as the 13th WNBA franchise on Oct. 5, 2023. According to Norse mythology, Valkyries are a host of warrior women who are fearless and unwavering – flying through air and sea alike.

This brand is Golden State’s modern interpretation of Valkyries: strong, bold, and fierce. Tipping off during the 2025 WNBA season, the team is headquartered in Oakland and will play home games at Chase Center in San Francisco. For Golden State Valkyries’ assets, including team logos, visit valkyries.com.